Vettel paces final session

Vettel lapped the Albert Park circuit in one minute 24.507 seconds on a windy and overcast day in Melbourne, to finish 0.857 seconds faster than Australian Webber, who topped the time sheets in the first practice on Friday.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton was third fastest with a time of 1:25.553, pipping team-mate Jenson Button, who recovered from an early skid on the gravel to post the fourth fastest lap.

Renault's Vitaly Petrov enjoyed a solid session, posting a time of 1.25.906 to edge out Spain's two-time world champion Fernando Alonso, who was sixth quickest for Ferrari in 1.26.121.

A number of drivers appeared to struggle for grip with the new Pirelli tyres, and Williams driver Pastor Maldonado's practice was cut short when he lost control and skidded into the gravel at turn six, the Venezuelan's car being hauled out by a truck.

F1 strugglers HRT's hopes of qualifying plunged when Vitantonio Liuzzi's car ground to a halt at turn four before he could lap the circuit.

Liuzzi had managed only about two minutes' driving in the last free practice on Friday.

His team-mate Narain Karthikeyan finally came out of the garage with some seven minutes left in the session, and rolled gingerly around the track before heading straight back to pit-lane.